BALTIMORE - Rob Manfred was elected baseballs 10th commissioner Thursday, winning a three-man competition to succeed Bud Selig and given a mandate by the tradition-bound sport to recapture young fans and speed play in an era that has seen competition increase and attention spans shrink. The 55-year-old, who has worked for Major League Baseball in roles with ever-increasing authority since 1998, will take over from the 80-year-old Selig on Jan. 25. Its a generational change much like the NBA undertook when Adam Silver, then 51, replaced 71-year-old David Stern as commissioner in February. And like Silver, he was his bosss pick. Manfred beat out Boston Red Sox Chairman Tom Werner in the first contested vote for a new commissioner in 46 years. The third candidate, MLB Executive Vice-President of Business Tim Brosnan, dropped out just before the start of balloting. "I am tremendously honoured by the confidence that the owners showed in me today," Manfred said. "I have very big shoes to fill." Selig has led baseball since September 1992, first as chairman of the sports executive council following Fay Vincents forced resignation and as commissioner since July 1998. After announcing his intention to retire many times only to change his mind, he said last September that he really, truly planned to leave in January 2015. One baseball executive who attended the meeting, speaking on condition of anonymity because details of the 4 1/2-hour session were not be divulged, said Manfred was elected on approximately the sixth ballot. The initial vote was 20-10 for Manfred, three short of the required three-quarters majority. His total increased to 21 on the second and 22 on the third. While teams put written ballots into envelopes, keeping their choices secret, from team official speeches it was evident that Tampa Bays Stuart Sternberg and Milwaukees Mark Attanasio likely switched, the person said. Manfreds total dropped to 20, then increased to 22 before a dinner break. He got the needed 23rd vote on the next, apparently from Washington. Owners then made the final vote unanimous. The person said it appeared Arizona, Boston, the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati, the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland and Toronto had been the final holdouts. White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf and Toronto president Paul Beeston spoke out strongly against Manfred, the person said. Angels owner Arte Moreno joined Reinsdorf in leading Werners support. "While Rob may not have been my initial choice for commissioner, the conclusion of a very good process was to name Rob as the person best positioned to help baseball endure and grow even stronger for the next generation of fans," Reinsdorf said in a statement. "Todays decision was reached by 30 owners voting separately but speaking, in the end, with one voice." Manfred started with baseball in the late 1980s as an outside counsel in labour negotiations and was hired by Selig as executive vice-president for labour relations and human resources in 1998. He received an expanded role of executive vice-president of economics and league affairs in 2012 and last September was promoted to chief operating officer, becoming the likely heir apparent. He helped lead negotiations for baseballs last three labour contracts and the joint drug agreement that was instituted in 2002. In the last contested election, in 1968-69, owners turned to their outside labour lawyer, Bowie Kuhn. The 55-year-old Manfred, whose term was not specified, grew up in Rome, New York — about an hours drive from the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. He must address issues that include decreased interest in baseball among younger people and an average game time that has stretched past three hours. "There is no doubt in my mind he has the training, the temperament, the experience to be a very successful commissioner," Selig said, "and I have justifiably very high expectations." Baseball has had labour peace since a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95 that cancelled the World Series. Talks to replace the collective bargaining agreement with players that expires after the 2016 season will be conducted with a new union leadership headed by former All-Star first baseman Tony Clark. "I have known Rob for more than 15 years, and Im confident that his vast experience in all aspects of the sport will serve his commissionership well," Clark said in a statement. SWell Flasche Kaufen . Still, Inter moved one point ahead of Parma in the race for fifth place and the final Europa League spot. Udinese remained 14th, 11 points above the relegation zone. Inter was beaten 2-1 by Atalanta at home on Sunday and has won only seven of 16 matches at the San Siro this season, as the squad seems to still be searching for its identity under new owner Erick Thohir and first-year manager Walter Mazzarri. Swell Flasche Holz . He had spent 16 days on the disabled list before being activated Thursday. He was batting just .203 when he came to bat in the 11th inning on Sunday. http://www.swelltrinkflascheschweiz.com/swell-flasche-500-ml-schweiz.html . JOHNS, N. Swell Flasche Bestellen . Kansas City became the first team in baseball history to win four extra-inning games in a single postseason on Friday, as Alex Gordon crushed a leadoff homer in the 10th and Mike Moustakas added the deciding two-run blast in the Royals 8-6 win. Swell Schweiz . Switzerland faces Belgium or Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals in April. Serbia dropped into the World Group playoffs in September. A confident Chiudinelli and Lammer defeated veteran doubles player Zimonjic and young Krajinovic 7-6 (3), 3-6, 7-6 (2), 6-2. NEW YORK -- Once Martin Prado caught Curtis Grandersons popup, Arizonas around-the-horn show zipped into fast motion. The third baseman whipped the ball across the diamond to second baseman Aaron Hill. He quickly tossed it to shortstop Chris Owings, who flipped over his shoulder to left fielder Cody Ross. One more pass to centre fielder A.J. Pollock, and soon the souvenir got thrown into the stands. Its a fun, unique routine the Diamondbacks often perform after inning-ending pops and flyouts, and they got to practice a few more times Saturday in a 3-2 win over the New York Mets. "No one really talked about it, we just started doing it sometime last year," Ross said. "You throw it to one guy, and then it goes to the next guy and the next," he said. "Just whoever is looking for the ball as we run to the dugout," he said. "Kind of a team-bonding thing, a chemistry thing." As Ross spoke, the postgame music in the Arizona clubhouse was pumping. "Young, Wild & Free" by Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg featuring Bruno Mars was playing, and Ross sang along to the lyrics of "were just having fun." Quite a difference from the start of the season for the Diamondbacks. After opening up at 8-22, theyve gone 11-9. Josh Collmenter provided another solid start, Prado hit a pair of RBI singles and the Diamondbacks won on a wet afternoon to end a three-game skid. A day after Hill had a home run washed out when the game at Citi Field was postponed because of rain, he cracked a key hit that counted. His second-inning double set up run-scoring singles by Prado and Ross that put Arizona ahead to stay. David Wright homered, doubled and singled for the Mets. After he connected in the fifth for his third homer, Granderson popped out and the Diamondbacks began tossing the ball around as they headed toward the bench. "Its like hot potato out there," Collmenter said. "Its fun to watch." Collmenter (3-2) won his third decision in a row over a span of six starts. The righty with the unusual, straight over-the-top delivery allowed two runs in six innings before the Arizona bullpen held on. Collmenter led NL relievers in innings last year, and began this season with four relief appearances. He then moved into the rotation after starters Randalll Delgado and Trevor Cahill were demoted.dddddddddddd. Arizona reliever Evan Marshall got Daniel Murphy to ground into a double play with two on to end the seventh, and Brad Ziegler escaped a two-on, one-out jam in the eighth. Addison Reed pitched a perfect ninth for his 13th save in 15 chances. Zack Wheeler (1-5) is now winless in seven starts. His lone victory came in mid-April when he won at Phoenix in Collmenters first start of the year. Wheelers control troubles have hurt him this year. A leadoff walk in the second led to Arizona scoring twice, and Wheeler later hit two batters. "I was a little bit better with my command today. I was not perfect, of course, but it was better," he said. Wheeler was pulled after throwing 118 pitches, matching a career high. "I could have kept going, if it was not for the pitch count or whatever. I felt strong all the way through," he said. Hill doubled off the left-centre wall in the second, near the spot where he cleared the fence Friday night for a two-run homer. The stats from that game were wiped away when it was stopped in the fourth inning because of heavy showers, forcing a doubleheader Sunday. Prados RBI single in the third came after a throwing error by shortstop Wilmer Flores and made it 3-0 as a light rain fell on and off. Granderson hit an RBI double in the Mets third after singles by Murphy and Wright. NOTES: Arizona had lost five in a row to the Mets. ... The Mets are 1-9 in their last 10 games decided by one run. ... Arizona RHP Bronson Arroyo (4-3, 4.45) will start Game 1 Sunday against RHP Rafael Montero (0-2, 6.97). The Diamondbacks will promote RHP Zeke Spruill from Triple-A to make his season debut in the majors in the second game vs. RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka (1-0, 2.14). Matsuzaka hasnt started this year. ... Righty reliever Vic Black will join the Mets as the 26th man for the doubleheader. He throws hard, but can be wild. ... Mets LF Chris Young rammed into the wall padding while catching Hills drive in the fifth. ... Mets RHP Bartolo Colon turned 41, a day after pitching four innings in the rainout. Hes giving up home runs at much higher rate than usual, and manager Terry Collins said pitch location is the problem. ... Wright is 13 for 29 during a seven-game hitting streak. ' ' '